Featured User: Anthony De Blasi

Anthony De Blasi is 39 years old and was born in Belgium. He is the son of an Italian father and a Belgian mother. He has been living with his wife Nathalie for 13 years now (6 years as a married couple). Together they have a wonderful, 7 year old daughter, Maxime. This happy family lives near the city of Antwerp where they love going out for dinner, inviting or visiting friends, travelling and enjoying all other good things in life, including good cuisine and exquisite wines. He has an economics degree and is currently employed as a Finance Director. Besides wine, his other two hobbies are cycling and music. Delectable: What sparked your passion for wine? Anthony De Blasi: Food and wine were always present in our day-to-day life due to the Italian influences from my father's side. Because my mother was also wild for the Italian way of living, it doesn’t need any explanation that the probability of a wine hobby was quite high (my sister just started her WSET 3 education). At the age of 28, I read a short article on the Italian wine denomination ( IGT , DOC , DOCG ). I was so intrigued that I drove to the first bookstore nearby and bought myself a wine dictionary. I still remember my wife laughing since she couldn’t understand why I was memorizing the Bordeaux left bank villages. Since that day, I haven’t stopped reading about, collecting and of course drinking wine. D: What wine region are you wild about right now? ADB: Piemonte , especially Barbaresco , is my all-time favorite, but currently, Greece has my attention. The high diversity of this country is so appealing, and it is able to satisfy all kinds of wine lovers. It may not surprise you that Naoussa is my favorite Greek region due to the similarity to Nebbiolo based wines. D: What is the most unusual wine you’ve ever tried? ADB: Without a doubt the ES from Gianfranco Fino . I wish I had this wine before I read the critiques, but I fully agree on what was written about it. The wine is initially all over the place, but in an unexplainable way, it all fits together and makes 100% sense at the end. Almost like an explosion played backwards. D: What is your golden rule for wine? ADB: Be ready for the wine. Exceptional wine will become mediocre if all circumstances around it are not perfect. If you are not ready for the wine, the wine won’t be either for you. D: Say you’re not allowed to have wine, what is your second option? ADB: Difficult one, I think I would go for a Gin-Tonic. D: Choose a movie, book, quote, or song and pair it with a wine ADB: Stripped by Depeche Mode and a well-made Barbaresco since the latter is for me the purest and most complex and honest expression of what a wine should be all about. D: If you were a wine, what wine would you be? ADB: A red Puglia wine like a Primitivo or Negroamaro . Loves the sun and approachable, but can have two sides: 1) reserved, down to earth and some acids when picked early or open 2) a bit flashy and sweet when picked later.

Bodegas Ribas

Sió Binissalem-Mallorca Mantonegro Blend 2004

Beautiful Mallorca wine. I was very surprised to see that this 15 year old wine was still going strong. Minor tertiary notes were present. Bravo! — 5 years ago

Keith, Ted and 13 others liked this
Anthony De Blasi

Anthony De Blasi

@Severn Goodwin yes, can't wait to open one but I read that patience is highly recommended with the 2013
P A

P A

@Anthony De Blasi Anthony Nice feature on you Cheers 🍷
Anthony De Blasi

Anthony De Blasi

@P A thanks a lot!!

Cellier du Château de la Chaume

Beauregard Santenay 1er Cru Pinot Noir 2015

Wow! Superb Santenay, easy drinking after opening but so intruiging and complex after 1 hour. — 5 years ago

Byron, Severn and 13 others liked this

Bodegas y Viñedos Montecastro

Montecastro y Llanahermosa Ribera del Duero Tempranillo 2014

Very elegant, nice integrated wood and subtle vanilla flavour. — 5 years ago

Serge, Bob and 10 others liked this

Château Fuisse

Saint Véran Chardonnay 2017

I love Chateau Fuissé. Very fresh, silky and round mouthfeel. — 5 years ago

Neil, Serge and 12 others liked this

Château Angélus

St. Émilion Grand Cru Red Bordeaux Blend 1990

Fascinating to see how the vintage determines the quality of the wine after 20+ years. 4 years older than the 1994 and still going strong! — 5 years ago

Severn, Alex and 33 others liked this

Gianfranco Fino

Jo Salento Negroamaro 2014

Sublime and promising nose but did not meet the expectations compared to the pricetag and the other wines from G. Fino. There are comparable and better Negroamaros for less money... My wife disagrees though... 😆 — 5 years ago

"Odedi", Bob and 7 others liked this

Fattoria Le Pupille (Elisabetta Geppetti)

Morellino di Scansano 2016

Such a wonderfull Sangiovese expression! Very fruity but enough depth and character to keep my attention. And than the pricetag... Good stuff! — 5 years ago

Mark, Ted and 11 others liked this

Château la Grâce Fonrazade

Persevero Saint Emilion Red Bordeaux Blend 2015

A 2015 which is 100% ready. Superb wine, smooth as silk, no further cellaring needed... — 5 years ago

Alex, Serge and 8 others liked this

Wijnkasteel Genoels-Elderen

Haspengouw Chardonnay Blauw 2015

Proud of our own country wine! — 5 years ago

Serge, Bob and 8 others liked this

Castello dei Rampolla

Sammarco Toscana SuperTuscan Blend 2011

My God! What a wine! Sweet/sour, violet, graphite, mouthfilling fruit but good acid structure. However, still quite tannic. I was blown away by this wine... — 5 years ago

Bob, Alex and 13 others liked this